“The Judas Kiss” Reflecting the Imagery of Martyrdom
By Ernest Kearney — There are particular products, —merchandise, institutions and other…stuff— exports from the U.K., which the rest of the world sometimes finds difficulty to appreciate.
“Hype Man” — Elevates Our Stories
By Ernest Kearney — At its best, theatre spans vast separations of time and culture revealing how shared struggles makes a community of all humanity. And this is what Idris Goodwin’s "Hype Man" at The Fountain Theatre, strives to do with its story of a
“The Old Man and the Old Moon” – The Essence of Hope Emblazoned in Power of Theatre
By Ernest Kearney — The Old Man and the Old Moon is an assemblage of all the elements that made theatre the earliest and most essential of humanity’s creative expressions:The making of myth and spinning of stories to explain the inexplicable, and
“Miss America’s Ugly Daughter” — A Runner Up
By Ernest Kearney — " Miss America’s Ugly Daughter" written and performed by Barra Grant, the daughter of Bess Myerson, the first Jewish Miss America, was once, possibly, an entertaining evening.
‘HIR’ — A Gender Bashing Romp not Quite There….
By Ernest Kearney — There is an adage in the creative pursuit of playwriting: “It’s easier to set them up than knock them down.” How this translates, in actuality, is that there exists an awful lot of plays with very strong first acts which then
The Importance of ‘Independence’
By Ernest Kearney — As one devoted to the study of history, I knew of Mary Walker (1832–1919), but I confess, only dimly in being aware that she was the only woman ever to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
“Jocasta” … More a Pity than a Tragedy
By Ernest Kearney — In "Jocasta A Motherf**king Tragedy," Brian Weir and the Ghost Road Theatre Company have taken Sophocles’ classic tale of Oedipus and window-dressed it for the “#metoo” movement.
Sex, Greed and Deception Times Two in “DoubleDouble”
By Ernest Kearney — “DoubleDouble,” playwright Guy Zimmerman reveals in the program notes, “came out of a case I wanted to make for Macbeth being history’s first Angeleno.” Zimmerman attempts to clarify that assertion by hinging the Scottish play to the 1944 classic crime film
“Desert Rats” is not a Wasteland for Audiences
By Ernest Kearney — "Desert Rats" by Nate Rufus Edelman is hardly the first play ever written about a kidnapping. It stands in the shadow of "Orphans" by Lyle Kessler, though Edelman’s work is far better written.
Best of Los Angeles Theatre for 2018
By Ernest Kearney — Many found 2018 a rather soft year for theater, and it possibly was. Or perhaps it only seemed so since the past few years Los Angeles has enjoyed an embarrassment of riches in the sterling productions that have graced her stages.